Before the NBA trading deadline Thursday the Bobcats traded their most valuable commodity, Gerald Wallace, to Portland for Joel Pryzbilla, Dante Cunningham, two first-round picks and maybe a gift card.

The only reason to get excited about the acquisitions is that Pryzbilla's contract expires after the season. So the Bobcats theoretically would some money to spend. But will they?

You'll recall they had an opportunity to trade Erick Dampier and his $13 million voidable contract before this season. Dampier was coveted precisely because the contract was voidable; that is, somebody could have traded for him and dumped him without penalty.

But rather than trade Dampier and add a contract, the Bobcats reduced their payroll by letting Dampier go.

To sum up, the Bobcats lost a heady, hustling, hard-working player who is the only all-star they've ever had.

This trade I compare to the indians trading the island of manhattan for $26.00 in dry beans and goods. This trade makes on sense. this trade proves jordan may not be as committed to winning as i once thought.

I'm a Gerald Wallace fan and he'll always be one of my favorite players in the NBA.
2 first rounders is pretty nice though and I'm glad they didn't settle for less, it would have been disrespectful to the player G Force is.

This has to be considered a good move given where they are (2 back of upstart Indiana and 3 back of Philly who are playing very well) in the standings and the uphill battle facing a first round series with either Boston or Miami. They need to reinvent themselves with the advent of "star" teams becoming so relevant - especially in the East. We shall see...

dont get too excited, let me remind you out of the all the draft picks we've had only two, 2 out of 12 have been decent picks (augistin, and henderson). we drafted adam morrison: bust. sean may: bust. derrick brown: bust. alexis ajinca: major bust. raymond felton: oh wait we'll just trade him away. i can run this team better than jordan

Charlotte played pretty well in geralds absence. Very good player but teams left him open in clutch situations. Hell thrive as 3rd option in Portland but mj wouldn't give him up for less than 2 first rounders. I'm all for it. Good luck crash!

So sad that too many fans think you can run a franchise with your heart instead of a brain. We all love G Force. However, the East is getting stronger and the current roster will never be any better than an 8th seed. I'm sorry, Tom but I don't want to settle for being "one of the East's better BAD teams" and I'm glad MJ doesn't either. To a man with SIX rings, barely making the playoffs and getting ushered out after the first round year after year is not acceptable. Good luck to Wallace but its time to rebuild.

Same like the only time yall write about the bobcats is when yall got something negative to say. I have to check numerous sights to keep up with the bobcats cause yall write about them every now and then. Write some good things and then people will have more respect for the negative stuff.

espn corrected it. its two first round picks and two players from the blazers. gerald wallace was easily this city's and my favorite player. But to call this a donation is so ridiculously short-sighted, id expect this comment from someone who hasnt watched the bobcats all year. Which would fit your profile well since outside of rick bonnell, not CO report every says anything remotely positive about this team. Gerald durability has been a question but the truth is, he hasnt been as productive this year and teams dont fear him as much. DJ commands attention, Jack commands attention and Henderson has developed into a new threat for this team. You can thank the development of Henderson for making Wallace expendable. Now we're in future mode and we're going to have to do this now that East has a completely different outlook.

As someone said earlier, Buy low, sell high. This was the best you'd get for Gerald. He's my favorite player still. But the East has become a beast overnight. Everything with this team has been short-term. Now its time to put out a solid-young product a la OKC.

I wouldn't call it a donation to Portland at all. Bobcats landed two (that's TWO) first round picks. Sucks losing Wallace, but he's also peaked and it's time to get something for him while they could. Time to let guys like Henderson come in and see what they can do.

You sound like I felt before I waited 15 minutes to let the emotion pass over so I could evaluate this trade with a clear mind. Two 1st rounders, an expiring contract, and a few players that could very well flourish with extended playing time. I love Wallace, and I wish him all the best. Jordan did not sell Crash for cheap, which was my biggest concern. We were well compensated for our only all star.

Oh, and count me amongst those who don't exactly write home about being "one of the Eastern Conference's better bad teams." If that was our ceiling with Wallace on board, then it just makes even more sense to me that we made this deal.